Mawlamyine Photos

Here are the late photos to accompany the Mawlamyine post!

Inle Lake

After arriving feeling a little worse for wear having not fully recovered from our bug, Inle Lake proved a wonderful place to recuperate! The extensive lake needs at least a day trip to do itself any justice, and I am sure we have had to leave a lot to our imaginations. None the less, what we did see was magical. Although it does seem to be the tourist hub of Burma and most of the little fishing boats are now powered by makeshift engines chugging out puffs of black smoke, fishermen still use traditional fishing and rowing methods which are fascinating, tribal women still wear neck pieces that elongate their neck making them resemble some sort human/giraffe hi bred and markets still provide locals with their daily shops. While it has been the most touristy place and we were getting used to and enjoying the feeling as if we were really off the beaten track, here has given us an insight into how lucky we are to see and experience Burma now before its rapid transformation is truly under way.

Yet again, the posts have uploaded in the wrong order!

I don't know if it is due to the smaller ones uploading faster and there for nip in before the bigger ones, but I will give a brief outline of our Myanmar trip so far and I'm afraid you'll have to juggle your way through the posts while I try and work out a way to re order them!

Ticked off:
Yangon; Hpa-an; Mawlamyine; Ngapali Beach; Pyin Oo Lwyn; Hsipaw; Mandalay
Still to go:
Inle Lake; Bagan; Back to Mandalay before flying to Bangkok

Mawlamyine

Lovely lovely Mawlamyine! What else is there to say? Three huge golden rocks balancing a top one another with a magnificent Pagoda perching on the pinnacle, all piled on top of a mountain with spectacular, panoramic views - making the two and a half hour slog to the top worth the pain; the worlds largest reclining Buddha measuring 250m in length; the Kyaikthanlan Paya, a stunning pagoda with panoramic views of the town and river, especially spectacular at sunset; divine riverside Burmese restaurants; a lovely huge hotel room over looking the river with wonderful sunset views and a lovely morning sun; the delightful Ogre island (where tourists aren't allowed at night as that's when the Ogres come out!) On the island we were shown around the rubber band factory, given bread from the pastry factory (both very small rural and locally run 'factories'), welcomed into numerous homes for Myanmar snacks, lunc hand tea, shown family businesses making all beautiful wooden sorts from walking sticks and musical instuments to pens and smoking pipes. All in all, a really wonderful town and experience!
Unfortunately, wifi is not strong enough here so I am not able to attach photos to this post but they will come later on!

Hpa-an

As we arrived in the rural town of Hpa-an we were greeted by a frenzy of friendly locals, albeit utterly surprised and bewildered at our existence! The town is a tiny market town that doesn't seem to attract many tourists - much to our amazement. Surrounding the village there is a panorama of picturesque countryside that spans from mountains and caves over the rice fields and extensive pagodas to the river which flows out to sea. The caves house galleries, centuries old, of Buddhist paintings, statues and monuments. Truly breathtaking, these caves are a reason enough to visit Burma. After slowly wandering through the entrance of the cave, with walls adorned with clay markings in red and gold, its well worth trudging through deeper into the mountain while slipping on bat shit and the threat of Gollum jumping out at any moment, to find a tiny thread of light peering through the other end. As we drew closer to the small hole that was our exit, we were greeted by the sun setting over a secret lake and a single fisherman diving in to catch his supper which made for a delightful picture. Together with a solitary hut that perched on the lake side accompanied by a little old lady and her two dogs made an idyllic setting. The gentle walk back topped off an already magical day.
In the mornings there is a delicious and lively market housing all fresh foods from bright exotic fruits and vegetables to fish still flopping and chickens still clucking - although not for much longer! And after stocking up on fresh fruits, we climbed aboard the little fishing boat, seating six in big reclining car seats, we sailed down the river towards the sea, to a coastal town called Mawlamyine. Stopping once at a beautiful, tiny village to see a traditional wedding, it was unfortunate that everything was put on hold as we proved to be more interesting than the happy couple! And only a few hours later, we arrived in Mawlamyine, the colonial capital during the British rule of southeastern Myanmar.